cheapest used car for a student to buy and run

ezzkikrios

hi, i've just passed my driving test and was looking to buy a used car. my requirements are:
1) used car price under 1500 pounds.
2) cheap day to day running costs ie. petrol consumption and spare parts/repairs.

i was looking at the ford fiesta, ka or the nissan micra.

any skint students out there, or anyone in the know, please give advice! thanks!

knowledgeman

ezzkikrios wrote: »

hi, i've just passed my driving test and was looking to buy a used car. my requirements are:
1) used car price under 1500 pounds.
2) cheap day to day running costs ie. petrol consumption and spare parts/repairs.

i was looking at the ford fiesta, ka or the nissan micra.

any skint students out there, or anyone in the know, please give advice! thanks!

Hyundais or another korean/japanese

Very reliable, cheap to run and better spec than a ford

colin79666

Peugeot 206 or Nissan Micra would be my recommendations at that price bracket.

knowledgeman

30111987 wrote: »

Peugeot 206 or Nissan Micra would be my recommendations at that price bracket.

First of all you would struggle to get a 206 for that money
Secondly older french cars are notorious for electircal problems

Frankly if you want a car to survive you need to sacrifice street cred/desirability for your budget

~daisy~_2

ive had fiat puntos for the last 4 or 5 years - i do buy fairly new but still cheap to buy run and never had any repair bills yet !! touch wood

Wig

What's wrong with your sisters Renault Clio? That's a good cheap car to run.

But you might look at old 106, and old style polos 1990 - 1993 (or when ever they stopped doing them and went onto the new shape.)

And learn to do your own work, as it will save you money.

ezzkikrios

my sister's really really old renault clio has had it's mot expired for the last 6 months, no tax, and i doubt it's gonna run again. got a quote from the scrap car people for 125 pounds.

i'm tempted to look at this hyundai accent 1.3 year 2001, costing 1150 pounds. sounds a bit cheap for a korean car which is not that old. what do you guys think? does it sound dodgy or kosher?

i was thinking, if i get an old ford fiesta, the running costs are low and because there are so many of them, spare parts would be cheap. nissan micras as well.

another thing, where can i learn to do work on the car i buy? haynes manuals any good?

thescouselander

I'd go with a ford - they are cheap to buy and cheap to fix if something goes wrong (although I hear they are very reliable).

chalky_bertie

I would also go with a Ford as this is what I have. Had it for just over 9 years and apart from tyres, exhaust and wipers etc it is the most reliable car ever. Just had to have some welding done under the seatbelt brackets but starts 1st time every time.

scbk

If you're a skint student, do you need a car?

If it's just for getting to college/uni then what about public transport? Or 2 wheels (powered or otherwise)

ezzkikrios

scbk wrote: »

If you're a skint student, do you need a car?

If it's just for getting to college/uni then what about public transport? Or 2 wheels (powered or otherwise)

i may be skint, but more importantly, i'm in my final year and it's make or break. i've been through 4 years of 3-hour-a-day-bus-rides. need to use all the time to study. i hate spending hours on buses to get to places i can drive to in 30 minutes.